NHL: Lightning strikes as Jersey falls behind in series
{{date|April 16, 2007}}

''Tampa Bay leads series 2-1. (Best of Seven)''
{{MatchScore|New Jersey Devils|2|3|Tampa Bay Lightning}}
{{Stanley Cup Playoffs 2007}}

After losing the playoff opener, the Tampa Bay Lightning have won two straight, to take the series lead, two games to one. Both teams did very well both on the attack and in their own zone at the [[w:St. Pete Times Forum | St. Pete Times Forum]] in Tampa, Florida Monday night. 

[[w:Vincent Lecavalier|Vincent Lecavalier]] would be the first to score midway through the first period, on a sharp angle to put the Lightning up 1-0. [[w:Johan Holmqvist|Johan Holmqvist]] would shutout the Devils though the entire first period but [[w:Martin Brodeur|Martin Brodeur]] would return the favor as he would shutout the Lightning throughout the second period. The Devils did rebound from the 1-0 score as [[w:John Madden|John Madden]] would score in the dying seconds of the second period to make the game 1-1. In the third period, as it was tied 1-1, [[w:Brad Richards|Brad Richards]] would score very early on and put the Lightning up, yet again, at 2-1. Shortly after the [[w:Brad Richards|Brad Richards]] goal, the Devils would counter with a goal of their own as [[w:Zach Parise|Zach Parise]] scored to tie the game once more at 2-2. In the end [[w:Tampa Bay|Tampa Bay]] would be victorious as [[w:Vaclav Prospal|Vaclav Prospal]] scored the game winner late in the third. 

Jersey goaltender Martin Brodeur needs to play better if he wants his team to advance, as he has given up a unusually high three goals in all three games of the series. The next game in the series is scheduled for Wednesday, April 18th, at 7:00 PM EST in [[w:Tampa, Florida |Tampa Bay]].    

== Scoring Summary ==
<br>
{| border=1 cellpadding=4 cellspacing=0 style="margin: 1em 1em ; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 95%; width:98%; border-bottom: none;" align=center
!colspan="7" style="background-color:#FFFFFF; border-collapse: collapse; border-top: none;"|<center>Scoring Summary</center>
|- style="background: #e9e9e9"   
! No. !! Period !! Time !! Team !! Scorer (No.) !! Assists !! Score
|- 
|1 || 1st || 9:06 ||TB || Vincent Lecavalier  (1) '''PP''' || Martin St. Louis (1), Brad Richards (1) ||0-1
|-
|2 || 2nd || 17:27 || NJ || John Madden (1) || Sergei Brylin (1), Brad Lukowich (1) || 1-1
|-
|3 || 3rd || 1:09 || TB || Brad Richards (1) || Martin St. Louis (2), Filip Kuba (1) || 1-2  
|-
|4 || 3rd || 4:46 || NJ || Zach Parise (1) || Travis Zajac (1), Jamie Langenbrunner (1) || 2-2
|-
|5 || 3rd || 13:31 || TB || Vaclav Prospal (1) || Vincent Lecavalier (1), Martin St. Louis (3) || 2-3   
|-
|}

== Goaltending Summary ==
{| border=1 cellpadding=4 cellspacing=0 style="margin: 1em 1em ; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 95%; width:98%; border-bottom: none;" align=center
!colspan="7" style="background-color:#FFFFFF; border-collapse: collapse; border-top: none;"|<center>Goaltending</center>
|- style="background: #e9e9e9"   
! Team !! Player !! Shots !! Saves !! Save Pct.
|- 
|TB || Johan Holmqvist || 32 || 30 || .938
|-
|NJ || Martin Brodeur || 24 || 21 || .875
|-
|}

== Three Stars of the Game ==
* #1 - [[w:Vaclav Prospal|Vaclav Prospal]], C, TB - 1 Goal(Game winner) 
* #2 - [[w:Vincent Lecavalier|Vincent Lecavalier]], C, TB - 1 Goal, 1 Assist
* #3 - [[w:Brad Richards|Brad Richards]], C, TB - 1 Goal, 1 Assist

==External Links==
[http://www.newjerseydevils.com/njd/indexb.php Official site of the New Jersey Devils]<br>
[http://www.tampabaylightning.com/ Official site of the Tampa Lightning]<br>
[http://www.nhl.com Official site of the NHL]

== Sources==
*{{source|url=http://www.tampabaylightning.com/
|title=Lightning Make Home Playoff Debut, Take Series Lead With 3-2 Victory Against Devils
|author=Melanie Formentin
|pub=Tampa Bay Lightning
|date=4/17/07}}

*{{source|url=http://www.newjerseydevils.com/njd/theteam/recaps/gr04162007.php
|title=Playoff Recap: Lightning 3, Devils 2
|author=
|pub=New Jersey Devils
|date=4/16/07}}

{{publish}}
{{Archive-unreviewed}}

[[Category:North America]]
[[Category:United States]]
[[Category:Sports]]
[[Category:National Hockey League]]
[[Category:Stanley Cup Playoffs 2007]]
[[Category:Ice hockey]]
Tampa Bay leads series 2-1. (Best of Seven)

After losing the playoff opener, the Tampa Bay Lightning have won two straight, to take the series lead, two games to one. Both teams did very well both on the attack and in their own zone at the  St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Florida Monday night. 

Vincent Lecavalier would be the first to score midway through the first period, on a sharp angle to put the Lightning up 1-0. Johan Holmqvist would shutout the Devils though the entire first period but Martin Brodeur would return the favor as he would shutout the Lightning throughout the second period. The Devils did rebound from the 1-0 score as John Madden would score in the dying seconds of the second period to make the game 1-1. In the third period, as it was tied 1-1, Brad Richards would score very early on and put the Lightning up, yet again, at 2-1. Shortly after the Brad Richards goal, the Devils would counter with a goal of their own as Zach Parise scored to tie the game once more at 2-2. In the end Tampa Bay would be victorious as Vaclav Prospal scored the game winner late in the third. 

Jersey goaltender Martin Brodeur needs to play better if he wants his team to advance, as he has given up a unusually high three goals in all three games of the series. The next game in the series is scheduled for Wednesday, April 18th, at 7:00 PM EST in Tampa Bay.    

*
North America United States Sports National Hockey League Stanley Cup Playoffs 2007 Ice hockey